Considering many of the missteps that the newer SimCity games have taken I am more than happy to say that Cities XL is more than able to contain the mantle of spiritual successor.

In the end, Cities XL 2011 is far superior than the previous game and its only downfall is that it may be a little too complicated for some.

It's not a technical failure, but it just doesn't offer anything new to the genre that was created and has remained the same since Caesar and SimCity.

Cities XL 2011 is a complete city-building simulator, but it lacks of many basic features to become a really nice game. More realistic than deep, the game will give many hours of fun to urban management fans but those who enjoyed similar games in the past may not be attracted by this new offer. Let's wait for the mods.

Its lack of vitality, sluggish menus and missing multiplayer element rob it of a lot of the fun.

More an update to the original experience than a sequel, Cities XL 2011 It's too easy and linear compared to other, older representatives of the same genre. Our advice is to keep playing Sim City 4.

This new iteration of Cities XL just lacks a little depth. But the solo gameplay is now more comprehensive (thanks to the inclusion of public transport, for example) even though there are still some issues like the freight. Unfortunately, the multiplayer disappeared in this refinement process of the previous iteration, without much to make up for the loss in challenge. Indeed, you'll have to do with the joys of management alone, or, of course, the simple pleasures of building lovely cities.